International   

Turkey, Iraq count on diplomacy

DUBAI: Aware of the negative fall-out of military action, Turkey and Iraq have decided to work together to tackle the Kurdish PKK rebels in northern Iraq. Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan and his visiting Iraqi counterpart Hoshyar Zebari have focused on diplomacy as a means for defusing the crisis.

Turkey is under enormous domestic pressure to attack PKK hideouts, after the group ambushed its troops under the cover of darkness on Sunday. At least 12 Turkish soldiers were killed and eight seized during the attack.

But after talks with Mr. Zebari, Turkish Foreign Minister said, “There are political dialogue, diplomacy, economic and cultural tools as well as military measures” to deal with the problem.

Analysts point out that despite the internal pressure for using force, Turkey has a significant stake in avoiding conflict. It is a major investor in northern Iraq, especially in the oil and gas sector.

Besides, the PKK has threatened to attack oil pipelines that carry oil from northern Iraqi oil fields and Azerbaijan to Turkish ports. International pressure on Turkey to avoid war is also building up, especially after the tensions along the Turkey-Iraq border have fed into the rise of oil prices beyond the $90 a barrel mark.

“We do not want to sacrifice our cultural and economic relations with Iraq,” Mr. Babacan said. The Turkish Foreign Minister, however, said he would not consider a ceasefire with PKK, following reports that the rebels might agree to stop fighting. “Ceasefires are possible between states and regular forces — the problem here is that we’re dealing with a terrorist organisation,” he said.

Mr. Zebari said the PKK “menace” would have to be addressed jointly. “We agreed that the position we should take is a common position to fight terrorism wherever it is and we will not allow any party or any group, including the PKK to poison our bilateral relations,” he said.

A senior official delegation from Iraq will head for Ankara shortly to work out concrete and practical measures to address the problem. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri Maliki has also reportedly agreed to work with the Turkish government to deny PKK to use Iraqi territory to attack Turkey.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Turkey, Iraq count on diplomacy
Osama stress on unity
Patience running out: Erdogan
NC rejects Maoists’ demands
Benazir Bhutto to avoid mass rallies
China all set to launch lunar orbiter
Aircraft were detected: Colombo
PPP-Musharraf talks put on hold
Musharraf package for Northern Areas
Bahrain outlaws sponsorship Gulf round-up
“India committed to gas pipeline project”
3 Indian children die of suspected food poisoning

Copyright © 2007, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu